Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929 - 1968)
photo credit: Bob Fitch/Black Star
Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.
- Martin Luther King Jr.
We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Remaining Awake Through A Great Revolution “, 3.31.68
Whatever career you may choose for yourself — doctor, lawyer, teacher — let me propose an avocation to be pursued along with it. Become a dedicated fighter for civil rights. Make it a central part of your life. It will make you a better doctor, a better lawyer, a better teacher. It will enrich your spirit as nothing else possibly can. It will give you that rare sense of nobility that can only spring from love and selflessly helping your fellow man . Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for human rights. You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.
- Martin Luther King Jr., 4.18.59
Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided man.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Strength to Love”, 1963
A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “The Trumpet of Conscience”, 1967
Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Letter From Birmingham Jail “, 4.16.63
I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality… I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.
- Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech , 12.10.64
If you succumb to the temptation of using violence in the struggle, unborn generations will be the recipients of a long and desolate night of bitterness, and your chief legacy to the future will be an endless reign of meaningless chaos.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Justice Without Violence”, 4.3.57
Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Strength to Love”, 1963
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Strength to Love”, 1963
The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.
- Martin Luther King Jr., “Strength to Love”, 1963
With thanks to the People for the American Way
1 comment so far ↓
another one
:: only when is it dark, can you see the stars. ::
mlk
be blessed.